I Rock Cleveland’s Guide to Cleveland Record Stores

Due to a unique superiority/inferiority complex that dominates the minds of many Clevelanders, we have this nasty habit of overvaluing certain aspects of our city while at the same time overlooking things we should be proud of. Let’s admit it. Cleveland isn’t the prettiest of towns. Our public transportation system wasn’t designed to get you to the places you really want to go. We pin our hopes of a turnaround, a turnaround some 50 years in the making, on shiny big projects like casinos and medical marts while our neighborhoods are a patchwork of cool, not cool at night, and not cool at night unless you’re packing and you can run really fast. Remember, there’s no stand your ground law in Ohio.

We desperately want respect. We want to be New York. We want to be Chicago. But more than that, we want the people from big cities like New York and Chicago to admit Cleveland really is kinda, sorta cool. We want them to respect our art and culture and our food scene. We want them to come here and affirm our superiority side and, this is important, not make any wrong turns in the process.

One area where Cleveland can provide an exceptional experience is Rock ‘N’ Roll, naturally. We have the museum. We have nationally recognized clubs like The Beachland Ballroom. And if you have an extra few hours and a car, we can provide a record shopping experience that rivals any major metro.

We’ll start our shopping trip on the east side in the North Collinwood neighborhood, home to the aforementioned Beachland Ballroom, and three record shops in two blocks. Then, we’ll get back in our car and make our way to the west side, to Tremont, Detroit Shoreway, and on to the suburb of Lakewood. By the time we’re done, we’ll hit eight record stores and you’ll have yourself a handy guide to record stores in Cleveland you can use for Record Store Day and beyond.

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